Lulu's Mysterious Mission - a booktalk

I'm still working my way through all the books I picked up at the ALA Midwinter Meeting.  Lulu's Mysterious Mission is the third installment in this illustrated, chapter book series.  I don't know why I never got around to reading the first two, but I'm making it up with a booktalk and a book trailer.  Enjoy!

Viorst, Judith. 2014. Lulu's Mysterious Mission. New York: Atheneum.
(Advance Reader Copy supplied by publisher - artwork not final)

Lulu's Mysterious Mission - a booktalk

Lulu's parents are going away on vacation, and they're doing the heretofore unthinkable, they're going without Lulu! When she meets her babysitter, the militant, Ms. Sonia Sofia Solinsky, and eats her first bean-and-beet omelet (a "taste" of things to come), Lulu begins to hatch some desperate plans.

Eeny meeny miney mo,
That babysitter’s got to go.
Sooner, not later,
Fast, not slow.
That babysitter's got to go.

Funny with frequent asides by the author, Lulu's Mysterious Mission will appeal to humor fans, ages 6-10. Oh, and, yes, there may be a mysterious mission.

On a bookshelf near you, beginning April, 2014.

Dumpling Days - a review (redux)

Lin, Grace. 2012. Dumpling Days. New York: Little Brown

I very seldom, if at all, repeat reviews, however, today I make an exception of sorts.  I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of Grace Lin's Dumpling Days, more than six months ago.  There is some debate within the kidlitosphere about when is the best time to post reviews of Advance Reader Copies.  Most would agree that mine was too early.

In any case, when the publisher mentioned that I had posted my review a tad early (6 months - can I help it?  I liked the book!), I offered to re-post it at a later date. 

Well, the time is now.  Dumpling Days is due out on January 21.  However, rather than re-post my review, I offer you a booktalk, a link to my previous review, and a look at Grace Lin's book trailer.

So without further ado ...

a booktalk

In Dumpling Days, Pacy Lin, her parents and two sisters (one older, one younger) are going to Taiwan for Pacy's grandmother's 60th birthday - for 28 days! Twenty-eight days?! What is Pacy supposed to do for 28 days without her friends in a country where she may look like everyone else, but inside, she's definitely not. At least there will be dumplings!

my review

Click here

the trailer

and, just for fun, a photo of me and Grace Lin

 She was ever so gracious at her book signings in New Orleans.

Enjoy Dumpling Days!

Dog Days

Kinney, Jeff. 2009. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days. New York: Amulet.

It's Dog Days as in the dog days of summer (the timing of this book's release could have been better) and Greg Heffley is looking forward to some quality indoor time, but unfortunately, his Mom's idea of the perfect summer vacation does not include horror movies, video games and TV. In Dog Days, Greg woefully recounts his misadventures at Rowley's country club, the public pool, his summer job, and the cabin at the beach. Rodrick, Manny, Gramma, Mom, Dad, the Jeffersons, and Fregley, all make appearances in this latest installment of the Wimpy Kid series. However, the true stars of Dog Days are Greg and his Dad, who learn that father-son bonding may not be the same in every family. Sometimes hating the same comic strip is all that you need.

Dog Days may not have as many "laugh out loud" moments as earlier installments, (Rodrick Rules is still my favorite) but it remains comic genius, hilarious sketches seamlessly integrated into the story, often acting as the "punchline" in place of words.

Usually, I can relate to Mrs. Heffley. In Dog Days, I completely empathize with Greg. As a child, I also dreaded the trip to the "public pool," although my experiences (thankfully) were not the same as Greg's,

"I didn't want Manny to have to walk through the shower area and see the things I've seen. So I got a towel out of my bag and was gonna put it over Manny's eyes when we walked past the shower guys. But in the two seconds it took me to get my towel, Manny was gone. And you'll never believe where he went."

You'll have to imagine the sketch of the diminutive Manny, whistling and washing in the men's shower, surrounded by hairy knees and ankles!

"I knew I had to rescue Manny, so I closed my eyes as tight as I could and went in to save him... When we got to the other side, Manny seemed fine, but I don't think I'll ever totally recover from that experience."

And although I never watched a movie with "the muddy hand," I do remember one with a charred, black hand, and can completely relate with Greg's feelings in this passage,

"My new fear is that the hand is gonna crawl up on my bed and get me in my sleep. So lately I've been covering my whole body with the blanket and leaving a hole so I can breathe. But that strategy his its OWN risks. Rodrick got into my room today, and I had to spend the morning trying to wash the taste of a dirty sock out of my mouth."

And finally, I have to agree with Greg on this one,

"There's this comic about a dog called "Precious Poochie," and it's been running for about fifty years. The guy who wrote it died a long time ago, but they're still recycling his old comics. I don't know if they're funny or not because, to be honest with you, most of them don't even make sense to a person my age."

Well, Jeff Kinney does make sense to a person of Greg Heffley's age! In fact, based on the phenomenal interest in his books, he makes sense to kids of all ages - from 9 to 99.

Check out The Diary of a Wimpy Kid website for the Dog Days Event Kit.

Carl's Summer Vacation

Day, Alexandra. 2008. Carl's summer vacation. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux.

This is another in a series of books about Carl, the lovable Rottweiler. In this nearly wordless picture book, Carl and Madeleine are sent off for a nap so that they'll be ready for the evening's fireworks, however, while Mom and Dad think they're napping, Carl and Madeleine are enjoying a summer adventure. They canoe (and tip over!), pick berries (and run from skunks!), swing, slide, picnic, and even play baseball! Mom and Dad just can't understand why they're too tired to watch the fireworks.

This is a delightful story, however, the illustrations are the true charm of this book that has a decidedly "old-fashioned" look and feel.